like herding cats
by the general girl
Summary: Marinette should have known better: try and herd a cat's heart and he'll fling himself in the exact opposite direction. — for marichatweek 2.0.
1. kisses

When they kiss, it's a dream.

Chat's shoulders follow the same lines that Marinette has memorized from a distance, and his eyes are a green that she knows as well as the red of Ladybug's suit or the dusky rose of a Parisian dawn.

He's hard and soft all at once, the leather of his armor warm but stiff underneath her palms. His lips are full and smooth, and he smells faintly of clove oil. The first Marinette can attest to experience, but the second is a half-formed, fanciful thought.

 _Would you know me?_ she whispers into his human ears, fingers carding through feathery locks of hair.

 _Would you still like me?_ she asks him, and it's something she doesn't have the guts to do in waking even with the suit on.

But in her dreams, Marinette is brave. And in her dreams, Chat pulls back just far enough for the planes and angles of his face to become dizzyingly familiar but no less dear.

 _Oh, Marinette,_ he says. _Always._

His lips curve into a smile shy and sweet, and then dissolves into nothing at all as Marinette jolts awake. Her bedroom is still and quiet, her ragged breathing the only sound cutting through the darkness. The blinking numbers on her clock tell her it's half past twelve, but she's sure that she'll get no more sleep tonight.

Because it'd been Chat Noir's voice coming out of Adrien Agreste's mouth. Or rather: Adrien's voice and Chat's body. There had been no distinction at all.

* * *

 **note:** Archived from AO3. Originally done for marichatweek 2.0 on tumblr.


	2. fairy tale

Marinette is so focused on staring at Adrien throughout the day that she even forgets to be clumsy; she is as surefooted as her alter ego and she gets through the entire morning without dropping a single thing.

It's been more than twelve hours, but the dream still clings to her like a stubborn stain. She remembers the sweet thrill of looking at Chat and seeing Adrien; she recalls the certainty and the lightheaded swoop of happiness in her stomach.

But the realization, the exact moment…She can't get that back.

Adrien is nothing like Chat. The two boys are worlds apart.

How could her sleep-drunk self ever have thought otherwise?

—

—

That afternoon, they discuss _Le Petit Prince._

"Some of the most cited quotations from the novella occur when the fox and the prince meet. The fox asks the prince to tame him. Can anyone explain why?"

"The fox was lonely."

Mme. Bustier blinks, and there's a soft rustle as the rest of the class rouse themselves to stare at Adrien. The boy isn't shy by any means, but he rarely ever volunteers his thoughts in class.

The blond looks just as surprised as the rest of the students, but a glint has appeared in Mlle. Bustier's eyes, and she nods. "Go on, Adrien."

"Uh…Well, the fox wants to belong. He tells the prince that his life is stale and monotonous, so he wants someone to care enough to tame him. Someone that he can belong to, and belong with—" Adrien abruptly stops, and from her spot behind him Marinette can see his neck visibly redden. "If, um, if you know what I mean."

Marinette wants to melt, and it's another difference. Because when has cocky, over-the-top Chat ever made her feel like this?

Mme. Bustier smiles in approval, "Good, good! Now that brings us to the fox's parting words to the prince."

She turns and scratches out a sentence on the blackboard: _"What is essential is invisible to the eye."_

—

—

Later, there's an attack at the park right as school lets out, and the akuma manages to corner Marinette before she can transform.

"Tikki, I think we're going to have to—"

A blur of black and green interrupts her, and then Chat Noir is sweeping her out of the way and deflecting the akuma's blow with his baton.

"You've got some really bad luck, Princess!"

Marinette gapes at Chat from under his arm, but before she can recover the akuma lunges again with his huge filleting knife.

Chat meets the enemy blow for blow, but even though he delivers his puns with his usual awful enthusiasm, Marinette's eyes are sharp, and she catches the way his arms tremble under the force of the hits.

Through it all, she's struck by the strength and breadth of him: leather-clad shoulders broad and spanning her field of vision, blond hair a sunburst in the periphery of her eye.

—

—

When the akuma finally moves on, Marinette grabs Chat's arm before he can chase after it.

"Next time, don't be so reckless."

Chat's expression of surprise morphs into one of hurt, and Marinette immediately regrets her tone; she'd been Ladybug-brusque without even realizing it.

"I'm sorry, I just meant…Take better care of yourself. Ladybug's magic might not be able to fix everything next time."

Her cat grins, and it is sharp and wild and unrepentant, "Does Marinette want to tame this cat?"

A pause as the words sink in, and then lance straight through her—bright and hot and sticky sweet all at once.

At her silence, Chat's grin softens into a smile that's dangerously sincere, "Princess, all you have to do is ask."

He's gone before Marinette has a chance to collect her scattered self back together.

—

—

* * *

 **note:** Prompts were fairy tale + "I was as hollow and empty as the spaces between stars".


	3. halloween

_Seven months earlier._

—

—

Halloween isn't a popular holiday in France, but this year, coverage of the American tradition makes it onto the local news thanks to a certain crime fighting duo.

"Paris' favorite heroes are becoming popular overseas. Reports from several large cities in the United States show a staggering number of children dressed as our Ladybug and Chat Noir as they enjoy trick-or-treating this October 31st."

The station cuts to footage of dozens of tiny Ladybugs and a smaller number of Chat Noirs roaming suburban neighborhoods. The costumes range from faithful renditions to more creative interpretations, but the majority of the Ladybugs have their hair pulled into the heroine's signature pigtails. Marinette has to clench her fists to keep herself from self-consciously touching her own hair.

"Aren't they adorable?" Alya coos, and hits the pause button on the video. Marinette quickly agrees, letting out a silent sigh of relief as Adrien and Nino pull back from where they'd been previously huddled close to the two girls.

"It sure seems Ladybug's way more popular than Chat Noir, though," Nino remarks as he settles back into his chair.

"Well, Ladybug's just way cooler," Adrien says offhandedly.

Marinette immediately bristles without thinking, " _Chat's plenty cool_. Ladybug would never be able to do it alone. They're a team, and they're best friends. You can't be a fan of one but not the other."

Her outburst is met with stunned stares, and then Marinette _feels_ the fierce blush beginning to stain her cheeks. Adrien is looking at her like she's just declared up is down, and Marinette has never wished that she could sink into her seat, through the floor, and disappear quite so badly.

Alya breaks the silence, "Damn girl, I didn't know you were such a huge Chat Noir fan."

Adrien is still staring at her, but now he's smiling like he's finally figured something out. "No. You're right, Marinette—they're best friends. Thank you."

Every time Marinette thinks it's impossible to turn any redder, she proves herself wrong. "Um, y-you're welcome!"

Mme. Bustier walks in then, and the subject is dropped as class begins.

—

—

Later, she would think about the truth of what she'd told Adrien. Because she and Chat _are_ best friends. Even if they don't know each other's names, Marinette _know s_ her cat in a way that she's sure that nobody else in his life does. Just as he knows her.

And even later than that, Marinette would wonder why Adrien had thanked her at all.

* * *

 **note:** Anytime there's a flashback, it's xx months from the present (the present part of the entire fic takes place over about the entirety of a week). Prompt was "Halloween".


	4. bodyguard

_Five months earlier._

—

—

Adrien is on his way to school from a photoshoot after a half-day absence when he receives the alert from the Ladyblog. An akuma attack, once again at Françoise Dupont.

A few moments later, the news breaks on the TV in the car, and despite Adrien's protests the Gorilla turns the limo right back around. Consequently, Adrien has to wait until he gets back home to sneak out again and make his way to the scene. He's sure that Ladybug probably has it under control, but he still moves as fast as he can.

When Chat Noir finally drops from the rooftops and lands in front of the familiar building, he's surprised to see his classmates huddled outside the steps.

Predictably, Alya is the one to break from the group and push her way to him first, her words spilling in a rush, "Chat Noir, you have to help! Two of our classmates are in there with the akumatized kid, but all the entrances are sealed and no one can get in."

Chat quickly scans the group of students, and his heart sinks when he can't find either Marinette or Kim.

"Where's Ladybug? Is she here?"

Alya shakes her head. "Not yet. We were all evacuating when the akuma got Kim, and Marinette was right behind me when we were leaving the classroom. The next thing I know all the doors started sealing shut and the teachers rushed us the rest of the way out. I don't know what happened."

Chat nods, studying the school for a way inside. "Don't worry, I'll take care of it. Update Ladybug when she gets here."

No puns, no jokes. Just the terrifying thought of two of his friends caged with a monster. If they'd gotten hurt because he'd taken too long...

Chat jogs backwards, extends his baton, and vaults straight into his nightmare.

—

—

The school is eerily quiet, and even though Chat knows that there are people just outside, he feels removed and remote.

At the very least, the akuma isn't hard to find; there's a proverbial trail of destruction leading to the science lab. Chat picks up a muffled scream, and it's instinct that drives him to use his baton and then his shoulder as a battering ram. The door opens under his weight, and he stumbles unceremoniously inside just in time to watch Marinette Dupain-Cheng slam her elbow into the massive akuma's nose.

"Sorry, Louis! But I can't let you hurt Kim!"

The boy in question is sprawled on the floor behind Marinette, and even though the girl is easily the smallest person in the room, the way she holds herself and the steel in her eyes lends her meters in height.

Armed with nothing but a heavy textbook in one hand and apparently her fists, Marinette stands like she's going to protect Kim and take on the akuma as if she too has the benefit of a magical, strength enhancing suit.

As if she doesn't need any superheroes to save her at all.

Chat laughs, and both the akuma and Marinette whirl to face him.

"About time, Chat Noir!"

Still smiling, Chat cracks his neck and gets into position. "Sorry to keep a princess waiting. It looks like you weren't doing too badly for yourself, though."

Marinette's answering grin is feral and fearless, even as she steps back and pulls Kim with her to give Chat room.

"Give it your best shot, kitty."

Chat nods, and with a new warmth in his chest, he charges.

* * *

 **note:** Again, five months earlier from the present. Prompt was "bodyguard". Happy holidays!


	5. behind the masks

**note:** The prompt this time is "behind the masks".

* * *

 _Chat Noir?_ she murmurs into the sun-warmed skin at the base of his throat.

Deft fingers skim the length of her arm, and she feels the throaty rumble all the way down to her toes when he says, _Yes, Princess?_

 _There's no way you're Adrien Agreste._

A laugh, and then, _Why not?_

Marinette struggles to find the right words to illustrate the impossibility and improbability of it all; the total cognitive dissonance.

She can only come up with: _You're Chat. And he's Adrien._

Marinette thinks Chat might be as dissatisfied with her answer as she is, but everything is dark and warm, and she doesn't want to open her eyes to find out.

 _Princess, this is just a suit. A costume. There's still a boy underneath the mask._

Would it be a disaster? Or something infinitely better?

Either way, she can't stand the thought of losing either of them.

 _Open your eyes, My Lady._

—

—

Marinette opens her eyes to someone gently shaking her awake. The afternoon sun is strong, but it's cool and shadowy under the leafy shade of the chestnut tree she's settled against.

"—rinette, Marinette. Class is about to start."

Adrien's concerned face swims into focus, and for a hazy, sleep-filled second Marinette breathes in the faint smell of cloves and Gabriel brand cologne, relaxing into his touch. A lazy smile is just beginning to bloom when Marinette's brain catches up to her body.

Suddenly, the hand on her arm burns.

Adrien must feel her tense, because he immediately drops his hand and his expression turns apologetic. With a start, Marinette realizes that she recognizes the uncertain slant of his eyebrows and the worried curl of his lips. The dappled sunshine casts a mask of shadow over his features and _oh, there it is_ : the certainty that reminds her of the fearlessness of free-fall.

"S-Sorry, I didn't want you to be la—"

"Chat?"

From the direction of the school, the last bell chimes, but Marinette's world has narrowed to Chat Noir—Adrien Agreste—kneeling not one foot away, green, green eyes wider than she's ever seen and staring at her in unguarded shock.

For the space of seven heartbeats, Marinette is sure neither of them breathes.


	6. cookies

**note:** Prompt was"cookies".

* * *

Afterwards, it's both surprisingly easy and just as hard as she'd imagined it would be.

Adrien and Chat slot neatly into one, because all along she'd never been pulled in two different directions by two different boys. The suits are magic, but as Chat— _Adrien—_ had said, a mask is just a mask.

It's the little things that change in the biggest of ways.

—

—

For example:

When they're doing something together as a group, sometimes Marinette will catch the strangest look on Adrien's face and realize it's because he's trying to hold back a pun.

When _it's_ _a_ _really good one Marinette, I swear_ , he'll pull her aside as everyone's leaving and proudly present it to her like the metaphorical dead bird on her pillow.

Marinette is exasperated to find that even when Chat Noir's puns are coming out of Adrien Agreste's beautiful mouth, their quality does not improve.

(But she'd be lying if she said she didn't enjoy seeing Chat's face light up without a mask in the way. Marinette will gladly endure all the bad puns in the world if it means that Adrien will get to keep having a reason to laugh so hard that he cries.)

—

—

True, Marinette had been reconciling Adrien and Chat in her head and her dreams for over a week now, but being confronted with Adrien's innate kindness and Chat's enthusiastic playfulness in one intense, undivided package proves to be a lethal combination.

Adrien doesn't try to separate his two halves when he's around her anymore, and the thrill that buzzes in her bones whenever they exchange secret, knowing glances or whenever she glimpses Adrien doing something that's pure Chat Noir wars with the guilt heavy in her stomach.

 _I'm Ladybug_.

Barely two and a half words, and yet the weight of them pulls Marinette down, down, down.

It has only ever been her own secrets in the way.

—

—

A small package of cookies drops into her lap from above.

Marinette doesn't even blink, eyes trained on her sketchbook. There's no helping the familiar smile that curves her lips though.

"Chat Noir."

Chat drops down next to the lounger Marinette's laying on with a soft thump. "It's im- _paw_ -ssible to surprise you, Princess."

She rolls her eyes, but when Marinette finally lays her sketchbook aside, the small smile has unfurled into a full-blown grin.

"You always cast a shadow, _chaton_."

"Awww, you're too smart for this plain old cat."

Their words keep their teasing lilt, but the earnest happiness written in every line of Chat's face mirrors Marinette's own.

"Hello," Chat finally says.

"Hello," Marinette returns.

A beat of silence, and then Chat points at the small bag still sitting in her lap, "Um, I got you cookies."

Marinette looks down, and her eyes widen when she recognizes the distinctive orange box inside.

" _Adrien_ , these are from a Pierre Hermé boutique...They must have cost a fortune," she raises an eyebrow. "You know I live on top of a _patisserie_ , right?"

Chat shrugs and settles at the foot of the lounger, his gaze landing anywhere but on Marinette herself. Pink dusts the skin at the edge of his mask, and Marinette realizes that this is the first time that she's ever called Chat _Adrien_ while he's still in the suit. Immediately, she feels the heat of an answering blush on her own cheeks.

"You're always bringing us stuff, Mari. I thought it'd be nice if someone else did the same thing for you for once."

Chat still isn't looking at her, but this is said in such a matter-of-fact tone that he might as well have been commenting on the weather.

Except that the _weather_ wouldn't have made Marinette feel as if her heart has jumped from her chest to lodge itself firmly in her throat.

But Chat isn't done: "I, uh, I wanted to make them myself but they got awfully burned. Our chef chased me out of the kitchen."

 _Ah,_ Marinette thinks, _goodbye heart. Goodbye soul._

"So I tried to get you the next best thing," Chat finally seems to have gathered his courage, and the sheepish expression on his face when he turns to face Marinette threatens to break whatever's left of her resolve. "It's probably for the best, I don't think mine would have tasted very good either way."

"But why?" The question leaves her mouth before she can stop herself, and Marinette immediately backtracks, "Not that I'm not grateful! I just...I was just w-wondering what the occasion was…"

Chat gets up and stretches, surveying the setting sun laid out before him. The light turns the stark darkness of his suit red and gold and warm, and his smile is soft but no less potent when he turns to face her again, "Someone should always do nice things for you, Marinette."

—

—

Marinette can't seem to shake her shock even long after Chat murmurs an apology about needing to set out for patrol and leaves.

She wants to cry: here are the beginnings of the bond she's always wanted with Adrien, yet Marinette knows that now more than ever she has to tell Chat the only truth that can make him hate her.

 _I'm Ladybug_.

Barely two and a half words. Just enough to break a heart.


	7. helpless

**note:** I ditched the prompt for the last chapter in favor of listening to Hamilton's _Helpless_ on repeat. Picture: Adrien singing the lines as he looks at Marinette with adoring eyes.

* * *

Chat waits for almost an hour, but Ladybug never shows up for patrol. Instead, it's Marinette that steps out from the shadows of the Fontaine Du Palmier. Even in the dim glow of the streetlights, her puffy eyes and tear stained cheeks call to Chat like a beacon. Heart sinking, he drops down from the top of the monument to land a few paces away.

The moment he touches the ground, Marinette bursts into fresh tears.

" _Mon minou,_ " she chokes out, "I need to tell you something."

—

—

"I'm s-sorry," Marinette cries. "I should have told you the second I figured it out."

Adrien's face is inscrutable, and all of a sudden he is as untouchable to Marinette as he was a few short weeks ago.

She'd lost him. Not just Adrien, but Chat—her partner, her best friend, the only one she'd trust with her life and finally her secrets.

Marinette crumples in the wake of the boy's silence, head bowing and body curving inwards with the force of her sobs. A pair of hands gently curl around her wrists, and through the spaces between her fingers she watches the light shift until Adrien's shadow closes the distance between them.

Nearer and nearer, until his warmth chases away the chill of the night.

Marinette is quiet when Adrien carefully pulls her hands away from her face. "Oh Marinette; my brave, wonderful lady. I should be the one apologizing."

A feathery lock of blond hair drifts across her nose as he dips his head and leans closer still: "I've known for almost half a year."

—

—

Adrien's smile shrinks as Marinette's red rimmed eyes grow wider and wider.

"Marinette? I'm sorry I didn't say anything...I know La—you didn't want us knowing each other's identities and I never had any proof. I...I didn't want to ambush you until you were ready to tell me."

Marinette makes a choking gasp, and Adrien hastily steps back, scanning her face in alarm.

"Marinette?"

"Y-You—You _Chat Noir!_ "

It'd been a laugh, Adrien realizes, as relief buoys his heart and a familiar grin makes itself known. "You're calling a cat a cat, My Lady."

Marinette halfheartedly shoves at his chest, another laugh bubbling out of her. It reminds him of the happy fizz of a glass of champagne; Adrien hopes he'll get to hear it again and again.

"All this time! All this time and you just let me—" she pales. "But the flirting! You never stopped—!"

"Ah, that." Emboldened by Marinette's positive change of mood, Adrien moves closer and drinks in her soft sigh of surprise when he releases his transformation.

Suddenly shy but unwilling to look away, Adrien takes Marinette's hands in his, "That's because everything comes back to you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng."

—

—

"I thought I was in love with Ladybug, but I was wrong. It was you. E-Every part of you. Your kindness, and your courage, and how you always try to do the right thing. You're a hero even when you aren't in the suit."

—

—

Marinette stares at Adrien dumbly as he speaks, her pulse a pounding roar in her ears. She thinks this might be another dream, except she's all too aware of every unnecessary detail: the out-of-order streetlight flickering in her peripheral vision, the sharp rock in her shoe, and Adrien's hands—clammy with nerves—in hers. Adrien had never had clammy hands in her dreams.

But this is so much better, because—

—

—

"You changed my life, Marinette. You change my life every single day."

—

—

He'd seen the truth of her, and still—

—

—

"It's always been you."

When Marinette finally kisses him, Adrien is more than just warmth and light and hazy shadow. She greedily loses herself in the softness of his hair, the solidity of his shoulders, the way she knows exactly where she ends and he begins and where they start to overlap. It's all so real that Marinette almost cries again.

When they separate, they're both breathless and grinning.

"Are you okay?" Adrien whispers.

Marinette looks at him: her boy, her cat. Says, "Never better."

She leans in again.

 **fin**

* * *

 **note:** Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed what is essential tooth-rotting fluff with a dash of angst.


End file.
